The Philippine Premier League (PPL) partners with Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN) Philippines partners for “Strategic Marketing Partnership.”
The PPL, which is a new football league and marketing organization under Philippine Football Federation (PFL) and the PPL-DAN PH partnership was announced in a press conference this Wednesday, January 23 at the Fairmont Hotel.
Present in the launch were Bernard Sumayao, PPL Commissioner, Mario Araneta, Philippine Football Federation (PFF) president and Richard Gannabas, PPL Tournament Director. DAN-PH was represented by Donald Lim, DAN PH CEO and Country Head, Joanna Chan Mojica, Chief Media Officer, Jam de Guzman, dentsu X GM, Masaru Kubosaki, Dentsu X Executive Director and Cesar Munar, Trading Director.
“We believe this is a new dawn for Pinoy club football,” said Sumayao. The PFF has given Sumayao and PPL Sports Group Inc. the rights to operate and market the league. PFF president Mariano Araneta is equally enthusiastic. “A vibrant domestic league is important for the growth of the game and we think the PPL has what it takes to succeed. We are all very excited,” Araneta said.
ESPN5 will be the league’s broadcaster, airing around 23 matches live, with highlights on ESPN5’s nightly magazine show, SportsCenter. Live streaming of matches is also planned.
Now, 11 clubs have signified interest in joining, but the target is to have eight clubs to participate for this year. These include PFF League champs Ceres Negros, Copa Paulino Alcantara holders Kaya-Iloilo, Stallion Laguna, and Green Archers United Globe, and the Philippine Air Force team
There will be numerous changes from the previous league. According to Sumayao, instead of a franchise scheme, teams will instead pay an annual registration fee that will be a fraction of the cost from the last two years.
The triple round-robin league will not be purely home-and-away, with matches played in 3-4 grounds in and around Metro Manila. The University of Makati, with a new artificial turf, will be one of the main venues. The league also intends to go to the provinces for centralized matches late in the season.
Sumayao, a 59-year-old Filipino who has been involved in media and content rights in Thailand for the last three decades, promises a festive atmosphere with live music and other attractions during matchdays. “We intend to have fan engagement activities during our matches. We want PPL games to be a fun experience for everyone in the family,” he said.
For more information in the coming weeks, visit the league’s Social Media Accounts: Twitter: PhilPremLeague Instagram: philippinepremierleague Facebook: philippinepremierleague
